Fifth-wheel for vehicles



(No Model.)

W. W. GRIER.

EIETE WHEEL EOE VEHICLES. No. 345.585. Patented July 13, 1886.

TENNESSEE- Ni JM.

IqvE 11km n" N W@ WI a?- UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

VILLIAM W. GRIER, OF HULTON, PENNSYLVANIA.

FiFTH-WHEEL Foa vEH|oLEs.

SSlPrGliFllCATQN forming par'. of Letters Patent No. 345,585, dated July 13, 1886.

Application filed May 29, 1886.

T all whom t may concern: Be it known that I, WILLIAM W. Grunn, of Hulton, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Fifth-Vheels for Vehicles; and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which 1 Figure lis an enlarged vertical section of my improved Iifth-wheel-applied to the headblock and front axle of a buggy, the section plane being on the line x x of Fig. 3. Fig. 2 is a horizontal cross-sectional detail view on the line y y of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. l.

Like symbols of reference indicate like parts in each.

My improved fifth-wheel is designed for use K in runninggear for vehicles having side springs and no perch, and, as shown in the accompany` ing drawings, is adapted especially for the running-gear known in the trade as Dexter Queen,77 having two pairs of springs, thelower pair of which is attachedat the rear end to the hind axle near its outer end, and thence converge toward the fth-wheel. It may, however, be used with vehicle runninggear in which the springs are otherwise arranged.

In the drawings, A is the front axle of the vehicle, (which, in Fig. 3, is represented as broken oit` at each end.)

B is the wooden axle-bed, placed upon the axle, and C is the bolster or head-block, to which the upper pair of springs is attached.

E is the lower circleplatc of the fifth-wheel, which is secured to the axle-bed B by means of a saddle, F, and clips F.

Gis the upper circle-plate, which is flanged and lits over the circle-plate E, and is secured to the under side of the hcad'block by a saddle, H, and boltsl. The king-bolt D extends vertically Vthrough a` lug, J, which projects from the saddle H back of the head-b1ock, and through a similar lug, K, whichprojects from the saddle F back of the axle-bed P.

L is a spring hanger or shackle, having at its rear a tubular socket, L', which lits around 5o the king-bolt beneath the lug K, the shackle then projecting backward, and being situate above the level of the bottom of the axle, prefa brace, O, which extends' thence under the axlc to the front part of the upper ci role-plate, G, to which it is secured by a bolt,.l?. .A nut, Q, fitting wit-hin a squared recess in the brace O around the king-bolt, bears on and supports the socket L', and a nut, R, on the lower end of the king-bolt holds the brace in position thereon. In case the nut R should drop oll, the king-bolt and brace will still be held by the nut Q.

The advantages of having a spring hanger or shackle back of the axle, as distinguished from having it under or in front of the axle, is, that the springs can thus be brought to. gether to a point on the shackle, which enables the vehicle to be turned much more easily, because the situation of the spring-hanger in the center of the axle removes it out of the wayof the axle in turning. A'n advantage of having the springs meet in the shackle is, that the springs then cannot move lengthwise independently of and against each other, as they do when their ends are separated, but are obliged to act in unison, thus forming a perfect reach, and making the vehicle to track evenly.

One ofthe advantages of pivoting the hanger to the king-bolt is, that it enables the hanger to be set above the bottom of the axle, and by securing parallelism of the two sets of springs makes the tracking and motion of the vehicle easier. It also enables the point of meeting of the springs M M to be nearly coincident with the pivotal point of the fifth-wheel.

I claiml. The combination, with the front axle and head-block, of a spring-hanger situate back of the axle and above the level of the bottom thereof, substantially as and for the purposes described.

2. The combination of a fifth-wheel, a kingbelt situate back of the axle, and a springhanger mounted on the king-bolt, substantially as and for the purposes described.

3. The combination of a head-block, a

IOO

spring-hanger situate above and back of 'the the kingbolt, substantially es and for the purnxle, and springs extending from substantially poses described. lo n common point in the hanger and diverging In testimony whereof I have hereunto set to the rear axle, as and for the purposes demy hand this 26th dey of Muy, A. D. 1836. 5 scribed. TILLIAM XV. GRIER.

4. The combination of ahead-bleek, n king Vitnesses:

holt situate beek of the axle, and :i spring- A hanger having :i socket which is mounted on W. B. ConWIN, THOMAS W. BAKEWELL. 

